The man whose dog was fatally shot by an off-duty Secret Service agent in Brooklyn in January wants to know the identity of the agent so he can bring a lawsuit against him, new court papers show.
Jonathan Elbaz says he was walking his Belgian Shepherd, Bambi, on a leash on Caton Place near Eighth Street on Jan. 13 when, “without warning, the off-duty Secret Service agent, unreasonably and without justification, drew his gun and shot Bambi,” according to Manhattan Supreme Court papers.
Now, Elbaz says, he plans to sue the agent for negligence and destruction of property and is seeking to identify him since the “NYPD did not publicly release the name” of the agent.
Elbaz is also seeking NYPD reports, logs, notes, 911 or 311 calls, Crime Scene Unit records, photos or videos and “other information the NYPD was able to gather regarding the shooting,” the court papers from Tuesday say.
“Without the identities [sic] of the individual who was involved in the incident, we will not know who we need to proceed against, nor will we know what claims to lodge,” the court documents say.
Officials at the time said the dog was aggressive and while it was leashed, the owner was not holding the leash. The agent told the police that the dog had charged at him.
Elbaz’s lawyer declined to comment.
The city and the NYPD did not immediately return requests for comment.
Additional reporting by Tina Moore
